Sushi, croissants & cupcakes on gulab jamun-loving Swiggy Uncle's platter this IPL

Experts weigh in on Swiggy's new series of hilariously self-aware ads featuring adland's beloved gourmand

The gulab jamun-loving, king of sneaking sweets for IPL matches, Swiggy Uncle has made yet another comeback in the hit brand campaign series. The two-film campaign released a few days ago, shows him trying out new things like sushi and croissants. Albeit, this time, the match commentary is missing and so is his wife, who used to keep a close watch on his shenanigans.

We asked industry experts for their two cents about the comeback of adland's beloved gourmand and his new adventures.

Nihilent Limited & Hypercollective global chief creative officer KV Sridhar (Pops) feels that has taken down the reliability quotient of the ad several times. “I used to see myself in that character because I used to do the same thing: sneaking in delicacies while hiding from the keen eyes of the missus. And that’s why I loved the campaign so much. But taking the character out of that homely scenario and taking him to a shooting set; the ads now look more like an insider joke.”

However, he adds that the idea and execution are beautiful and brilliantly executed. “Undoubtedly, the ads are good but it would have been better if they took other people trying different things. He (Uncle) did not fit well there.”

Former ad filmmaker and ex-chief creative officer at agencies like Leo Burnett, FCB Ulka, KS Chakravarthy (Chax), on the other hand, has no complaints with the campaign.

He says, “I love these ads - the one I see regularly on air is the one with chopsticks, and I find it enjoyable even after 10 viewings. Strategically, ignoring the incredibly boring teenage/young adult cliche and showcasing unexpected people is something Swiggy has been doing very well. And this one nails it beautifully - the character, the simple but credible execution, the self-deprecation (bless every client smart enough to know that consumers absolutely love brands with the imagination to laugh at themselves).”

He further notes that dropping off the cricket commentary is also a good idea. “Thank god they avoided the other overdone IPL cliche - though again, Swiggy has done it better than anyone else in the past. So to use yet another cliche they've avoided, these hit it well well and truly out of the park.

Brand-Building Founder and Brand Strategist Ambi Parameswaran is also all praises about the ads: "I loved the Gulab Jamun Uncle ads of last year. These new ads are continuing with the same character but adding a new layer to the narrative. The ads are charming and fun to watch but also deliver a message of ’trying something new’ through Swiggy. With the lockdown of upper-income consumers, millennials are bored with the same old home food. We are seeing a strong uptick in a variety of RTE foods. Swiggy has latched on to this trend by making a ‘Gulab Jamun Uncle’ try Japanese Sushi or a French Croissant. What makes these ads charming is the way they have delivered the message in a dash of self-deprecatory good-humoured way. Well done."

The twitterverse also seems to be fairly impressed with the campaign.

@swiggy_in new advertisement of GULABJAMUN UNCLE is absolutely funny and great.
My mom laughs so much after watching this ad evrytime.
Thanks for making my mom laugh ❤️@SwiggyCares @swigg
— Mohit M (@iamMohiitt) April 25, 2021

I quite like the new @swiggy_in ad with #GulabJamunUncle. The one where he talks about ordering a croissant. ? pic.twitter.com/HyKR013dQ6
— Karan R Bhatia (@karanrbhatia) April 24, 2021

With a lot of substandard and at best ordinary ads craving for attention, @swiggy_in 's 'do something different' ad does bring a smile on the face. Well conceived
— Hemanth Pradeep (@hemanth_pradeep) April 22, 2021

The two TVCs are conceptualised in-house by Swiggy, with production and servicing support from Lowe, and produced by Zigzag Films.